Page 95 of Gambler's Conceit
I tense, waiting for Caleb to say something that will piss me or Havoc off.
“I know you will, pet,” Caleb answers. He extends his arm in invitation, and after only a brief hesitation, Seven gets off the bed to go into Caleb’s arms.
Caleb kisses the top of Seven’s head. “Good pet.”
Something twists in my stomach as I watch the two of them. I don’t want to see Seven get hurt, but, fuck. If the only way he’s going to stay here—to stay safe—is if Caleb and Havoc hurt him…
I guess I’ll have to fucking deal with it.
TWENTY-TWO
SEVEN
Lyingdown on my stomach on the bed, I close my eyes as Havoc runs his fingers through my hair. He thinks he’s soothing me, but really, it’s the thought of the impending punishment that has me settling down.
I’m still nauseated from the booze, but the urge to vomit is gone—and I’m more than sober enough now to take this.
Not that I’d tell Caleb if I wasn’t.
Vortex lurks nearby, standing just beside the bed. He’s in full-on Daddy mode, as Della would call it, and I’m surprised to realize I don’t actually mind. I’ve called men Daddy before, men who have made my skin crawl. Vortex, though… He’s a caregiver in a way no one else has ever been for me, and I don’t know how I feel about that.
Not that it matters right now.
“I’m going to flog you,” Caleb announces in his authoritative voice. “But before I do, I want you to tell me why I’m doing this.”
I squirm.
I don’t like this part of the punishment at all, but I know he won’t get to the flogging until I work through why the three of them are so angry at me.
I should apparently be ashamed of myself or something, but I don’t really think I did anything wrong. I know what they want to hear, though.
“I had too much to drink,” I begin, my voice muffled from where I have my face buried against Havoc’s thigh.
“Shouldn’t have had anything at all,” Vortex mutters from nearby.
I lift my head and glower at him. “I’m an adult, Vortex.”
“If you want to be treated like an adult, you should fucking act like one,” Vortex retorts.
“No,” Caleb interjects. “That’s not why you’re being punished. Try again.”
“I was going to let someone else fuck me,” I say with a loud huff. “That’s why you’re mad.”
Havoc tightens his grip on me, but he releases immediately. “You shouldn’t have gone with another guy. You’ve already got us.”
I almost make a comment about them not being enough, just to see if I can piss them off, but I hold my tongue.
Barely.
“No,” Caleb interrupts again. “That isn’t it either. I want you to really think, Seven.”
“Iamthinking,” I tell him. “I don’t know what you want me to say. Is it about the condom thing? Because you have me on those pills now.”
Caleb lets out a huff. “The pills don’t protect against other STIs. But no. The reason is, Seven, that we want you to be safe. We want you to care about your well-being. And that includes not doing something you clearly hate just to provoke a reaction from me, or Vortex, or Havoc.”
“I didn’t do it because I hated it,” I protest, panic rising inside me. “Everyone says getting drunk feels good, so I thought I’d try it. And sexdoesfeel good. None of you were around, so… I don’tthink I did anything wrong. I didn’t do it to get a reaction. I did it because…” I trail off.
I don’t want to talk about mafia things, or what had been going through my head.